I had high hopes for the weekend but in the end both walks on Saturday and Sunday seemed to be a bit of a let down given the time of year .
Spring migrants are arriving but very slowly , with Chiffchaffs slowly building up numbers with 5 on Saturday and then 7 on Sunday , a similar story been seen with Blackcaps with 3 on Saturday ,then 5 on Sunday .I could not find any other warblers yet ,but they cannot be far behind.
On the pastureland Skylarks were in good voice with 8 plus singing on Sunday, but on Saturday only 2 been seen . Our flock of Meadow Pipits have departed so it was nice to see a flyover bird heading north ,then a small party of 3 on a ploughed field on Sunday, spring migrants passing through no doubt.
The ever present and ever calling but invisible Green Woodpecker was present , calling from the distance .
There was a influx of Stock Dove on Sunday with 11 ,but birds seem to be local with most of them being near suitable breeding areas.
On the raptor front ,a female Kestrel drifted across the patch on Saturday ,and the local pair of Buzzards were near their usual nesting area.
On Sunday 2 Raven passed over low calling heading north , great birds and a joy to them on such a regular basis over the local area nowadays.
A pair of Yellowhammer on the northern edge of the patch gives me hope they may try to breed nearby, its really sad that once such a common bird is in so much trouble thanks to our farming practices nowadays.
The best of the rest were 2 Pied Wagtails and 2 flyover Greylag Geese.
The local birds are getting on with the job of setting up home and or breeding .One of the first birds I saw this morning was a female Blackbird carrying food , you would find it hard to believe that they may have young already. I also saw a Jackdaw taking fur off the back of rather unconcerned cow and Great and Blue Tits taking nesting material from some bulrushes from around a small pond so despite the lack of migrants this weekend for some Spring time has arrived .
In the garden our Blue Tits are still looking like they will use the nest box ,and we are still getting visits from the local Robins. For my Bullfinch fan ,sorry I came up with a big blank again today.
